Improved trace-buckle



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

KASSON FRAZER, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

IMPROVED TRACE-BUCKLE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 88,952, dated April 13, 1869.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Krisson FRAZER, of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Trace-Buckles; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, sufcient to enable others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, and inwhich- Figure 1 is a longitudinal central section of my improved buckle 5 Fig. 2, atop view of the Fig. 3 is a top view ofthe slide detached, with the tongue and spring.Y

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

My invention consists in forming the frame of a buckle with inclined sides, on which moves a slide carrying the tongue and spring.

It also consists in placing a flat spring over the tongue of the buckle, whereby said tongue is held rmly in position in the strap, all as hereinafter more fully described.

In the drawings, A is the buckle-frame- This frame may be constructed of brass or other suitable material, and is provided with loops a a b, to which the various parts of the harness are fastened. Another loop, d, is provided for the connection of the hames-tug B. The upper portion of the frame A forms a cap, C, having a recess, e.- The sides of the frame are made with inclined surfaces f f f f', for a purpose to be hereinafter explained.

D- represents a sliding plate formed with four projections, i i, two on each side, at each end of the slide. These projections have beveled surfaces underneath,which rest on the inclined surfaces fff f', and slide up and down thereon, toward and from the top C of the buckle, holding the strap between said top and the slide. The slide D is provided with a longitudinal slot g, through which a tongue, E, plays. The tongue has a shank, h, and journals Z Z, which fit in recesses m, formed in the slide. The tongue Eis held in position by means of a fiat spring, F, the end of which presses upon the journals Z Z of said tongue. In order that the spring itself may be held in position, one end is placed under two .projections, r 7', on the slide D.

When it is desired to fasten the trace G, it is placed between the cap C and the slide D,

and then shoved along until the tongue E reaches one of the holes y y, into which it is pressed by the action of the spring F, and there securely held. rIhe tongue E passes through the hole y into an open recess, e, in the cap Gf When the draft of the horse is brought to bear on the traces, the slide rises upon the inclines f f f f and clamps the strap between the slide and the topC, thus rendering the fastening more secure as the draft increases. To release the trace from the buckle, the tongue is withdrawn from the hole which it occupied in the strap, when the latter can be readily drawn out.-

-These buckles may be made highly ornamental, and, being simple, convenient, and durable, their advantages will be readily seen and appreciated.

Having thus described myinvention,what I claim as new, and desire to secure byv Letters Patent, is-

1. rlhe frame A, formed with inclined sur- 'faces f f f f and adapted to receive the slide D, having projections it', all operating substantially as herein described.

2. The tongue E, made substantially as herein set forth, hung in the slide D and pressed down by the flat spring F, substantially as set forth.

3. The frame A, with loops a a b d, top C, with recess e, and inclined sides f f f f', adapted to receive a slide, D, having projections 'i z and carrying the tongue E, substantially as specified.

4. The slide D, having projections z' t and provided with a tongue, E, and the spring F, when fitted in a frame, A, having inclined surfaces f f', substantially as set forth.

5. A trace-buckle composed of a slide, D, carrying a tongue, E, and a spring, F, and a frame, A, the slide D movingin the frame 011 inclined surfaces z' i, substantially as herein described.

6. The mode of locking and unlocking the tongue by means of two sets of inclined guides, which support both 'ends of the tongue-slide in the operation of locking and unlocking, substantially as described.

To the above I have signed my name this 6th day of March, 1869.

KASSON FRAZER. Witnesses:

J. W. Ross, E. H. BANcRoET. 

